“Options”, “Independence” and “Diversion” are terms that affect lives in the 21st century positively and negatively – both in everyday life and in the entertainment industry. With the title “Neue Vielfalt. Medienpluralität und -konkurrenz in historischer Perspektive [New Diversity. Media Plurality and Media Competition in Historical Perspective]”, the editors Thomas Birkner, Maria Löblich, Alina Laura Tiews and Hans-Ulrich Wagner gather studies on the beginning, the development and the meaning of media plurality.
“New Variety” always occurs when another element is added to an area or an offer. There are numerous examples in the history of media, starting with the introduction of the first broadcasting system through to the development of current streaming models: examples accompanied by the promise of a new variety. However, the term also includes the consequences for further developments and competition as well as the influence on recipients. This broad understanding of variety captures technical, political, economic, social and content-related dimensions that are subject to interactions and, thus, allows us to access this topic systematically. Not only the press in the German Empire but also the commercialisation of the “new media” are under close scrutiny in these articles.
The 10th volume of the series “Öffentlichkeit und Geschichte [Public and History]” concretises the topic of media variety, which was negotiated at the Jahrestagung der Fachgruppe Kommunikationsgeschichte in der DGPuK [Annual Symposium of the Section History of Communication of the DGPuK] in January 2015 regarding the introduction of the broadcasting system 30 years ago. Based on specifically chosen case studies, the authors ask when and why the ‘new variety’ emerged and what effects occurred. The assembled contributions do not only give a comprehensive retrospective but also offers a preview on the future significance of media variety. With this linkage of past and present, this volume fits into the series published by Marcus Behmer, Hans Bohrmann, Wolfgang Duchkowitsch, Fritz Hausjell and Horst Pöttker.
Thomas Birkner / Maria Löblich / Alina Laura Tiews / Hans-Ulrich Wagner (eds.) (2016): Neue Vielfalt. Medienpluralität und -konkurrenz in historischer Perspektive Perspektive [New Diversity. Media Plurality and Media Competition in Historical Perspective] . Cologne: Halem, 336 pp. (Öffentlichkeit und Geschichte [Public and History], 10)
ISBN (Print) 978-3-86962-204-0
EUR(D) 34,00
ISBN (E-Book) 978-3-86962-205-7
EUR(D) 28,99
Birkner, T.; Löblich, M.; Tiews, A. L.; Wagner, H.-U. (eds.) (2016): Neue Vielfalt. Medienpluralität und -konkurrenz in historischer Perspektive [New Variety. Media Plurality and Media Competition in Historical Perspective]. Cologne: Halem (Öffentlichkeit und Geschichte, 10 [Public and History, vol. 10]).
